Plus
You thought the defending Stanley Cup champs would be the pick to win this division, didn’t you? Nope. Teams will be after the Bruins every night, and they can’t possibly be as interested anymore. Buffalo, with the great Lindy Ruff as its coach, and the excellent Ryan Miller as its goalie, is the right pick here.

Minus
Ottawa was expected to be a playoff team last season, but injuries and underachieving players doomed the team to a 13th-place finish in the Eastern Conference. And now, the Senators are rebuilding — which is the right thing to do, but likely won’t be pretty.

Power Play
Goalie Tim Thomas got most of the credit for Boston winning the Cup, but defenseman Zdeno Chara was as much, or more, of a hero than Thomas during its postseason run. Isn’t it time for him to win a Norris Trophy?

One more thing
Thomas is the unquestioned No. 1 goalie in Boston, right? Not so fast. Tuukka Rask is expected to share the workload for the Bruins. Wonder how that’s going to work out.

ATLANTIC DIVISION

Jamie Squire/Getty ImagesThe Pittsburgh Penguins' Evgeni Malkin ended last season early because of knee surgery.

Plus
With a healthy Evgeni Malkin enjoying a fine preseason and looking to atone for two straight off years (last season ending prematurely because of knee surgery), the Penguins are a popular pick to win it all. They’re already loaded on offense, and imagine how much better they’ll be if Sidney Crosby returns from a nearly yearlong absence due to a concussion.

Minus
The Islanders have some good young players, but the state of their arena, and their future on Long Island, is a pretty big distraction. Besides, if Jay Pandolfo can make your team after a training camp tryout, that’s not a good sign, is it?

Power Play
Okay, let’s be honest: Even if Crosby’s healthy, a motivated Malkin is better. Look out for big things from him this season.

One more thing
Martin Brodeur certainly won’t be sad to play the Rangers and not have to answer questions about the now-departed Sean Avery. The guess is the Rangers themselves won’t be unhappy about that, either.

Plus
The Capitals have been knocking on the door for the last few seasons and one of these years they are going to win the Stanley Cup. It’s inevitable. The Caps are again talented and deep, and they improved their goaltending depth when they brought in Tomas Vokoun this season.

Minus
The folks in Winnipeg were ecstatic to get an NHL team again, but without realignment, the Jets will be forced to play in the Eastern Conference, and that travel is going to be tough. Don’t expect much from them.

Power Play
Alex Ovechkin suffered his worst statistical season in 2010-11, and will be motivated to bounce back in a big way. He’ll also be motivated by the memory of the KHL club, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, and will be — along with Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin and other Russian NHLers — to raise money for the families of the Lokomotiv players who were killed in the Sept. 7 plane crash. A motivated Ovechkin will prove a dangerous thing to NHL opponents.

One more thing
How weird will it be to have the Winnipeg Jets in the Southeastern Division? That’s just crazy.

Plus
It’s amazing how, year after year, the Red Wings just keep being excellent. Detroit will be undergoing a transformation of sorts with the retirement of longtime Red Wing Kris Draper and former Devils defenseman Brian Rafalski. But with the aging Pavel Datsyuk and the ageless Nicklas Lidstrom still performing at elite levels, the Red Wings won’t miss a beat.

Minus
Columbus made a move to improve its roster by adding Jeff Carter from the Flyers in the offseason. But here’s the thing: If the Flyers saw fit to blow up their team, and trading Carter — one of their stalwarts — was part of that plan, what does that say about what Philadelphia thinks of Carter? Beware, Blue Jackets.

Power Play
There are lots of great players in this division, but Chicago’s Jonathan Toews, 23, is the center of what’s happening with the Blackhawks, and with 115 career goals in four seasons, he seems poised to take the next step to true stardom.

One more thing
Detroit has been trying to get to the Eastern Conference for a while and with realignment coming after the Atlanta Thrashers’ move to Winnipeg, the Red Wings could be headed to the Northeast Division next season.

NORTHWEST DIVISION

Bruce Bennett/Getty ImagesThe Vancouver Canucks have two of hockey's best players in Daniel (left) and Henrik Sedin.

Plus
The way it lost in the Stanley Cup Finals to the Bruins was more than painful for Vancouver — it was downright embarrassing. But don’t think the team will go away after all that. It still has two of the best players in the world on their team, Daniel and Henrik Sedin, and despite all the naysayers, Vancouver still has one of the league’s best goalies in Roberto Luongo. Plus, now, the Canucks ought to be hungrier than before.

Minus
So, the Edmonton Oilers brought back 35-year-old Ryan Smyth? Really? How does that help anybody?

Power Play
Pick a Sedin — any Sedin — and you’ll have a player that will help make your team the team to beat in this weak division.

One more thing
If the Oilers end up with the No. 1 pick in the draft next summer, it’ll be the third year in a row. That hasn’t happened since the Quebec Nordiques had it in 1989-91. Those picks set the foundation for the great Colorado Avalanche teams of the mid-to-late ’90s.

Plus
Seriously, isn’t it about time the Sharks get to the Stanley Cup Finals, at least? Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Co. (which now includes ex-Devils D Colin White, remember) have the talent to win their division and finish high in the Western Conference standings — again. The question, as always, is: Can they win three playoff rounds next spring?

Minus
What did Dallas do to upgrade its roster in the offseason? Oh, that’s right — um, nothing. Have you seen the roster? The Stars’ best hope at this point is to get moved out of this division after the NHL realigns.

Power Play
Fifty goals last season marked Anaheim winger Corey Perry’s entrance to the NHL elite players’ list. And he’s not the only weapon on the Ducks’ roster. The team from Orange County will challenge San Jose for division supremacy all season.

One more thing
Two teams in the division — the L.A. Kings and the Ducks — open the season over the weekend in Europe. With all the travel those teams are going to do over the regular season, is it really the best thing for them to be opening up on another continent?